The 2,600-word Q & A addresses in detail Rodriguez shaming his legacy with a season-long suspension in 2014 for using performing-enhancing drugs. He also talked about being in therapy during his suspension, fiancé Jennifer Lopez and a lot more.

1. Therapy helped Rodriguez understand that he was responsible for his PED suspension, not others.

“That when I got into (therapy). … It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. In many ways, it’s rewiring the brain. When the suspension first happened, I was pissed off at everyone. I was blaming everyone. It wasn’t until I got deeper into it that I said, ‘No, it’s not their fault. It’s your fault.’"

2. He had an interesting response after being told by the interviewer that he’s ‘done the best’ at rebounding from being linked to steroids, “better than guys like Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens.”

“I cannot speak about anybody else,” Rodriguez said. “If you’re asking about me, I think it started with taking full responsibility for my missteps. I paid a huge price: the longest suspension in the history of MLB for PED use. And while I was away, I took that year to reflect. I wanted to understand why I kept shooting myself in the foot.

“I’m still a work in progress, but one thing I learned was that I was good enough. I did not need to overreach. And when I turned the lens inward, I found this incredible amount of gratitude and appreciation and respect for others and myself in a way that perhaps was not there in the past. With that attitude, I was able to enjoy life better. It made me a nicer person to be around. It made me a better father.”

3. Rodriguez believes some of his mistakes may have been avoided if he went to college instead of turning pro right out of high school.

“I went to my high school prom, and several months later I was playing at Fenway Park," he said. “I was good enough physically to be there, but mentally I was still in high school. I never make excuses for myself, but not benefiting from being on a college campus for four years and having the time to evolve ... I lost my way somewhere along the line."

4. Rodriguez was asked twice in the interview if he and his advisors ever talked about admitting his PED use before he was suspended, and both times he chose not to answer the question.

“I’ve taken the position of just owning everything. At some point, and maybe it’s in the future, I feel like this is an answer I would like to give on-camera because I think people have to see my sincerity. … So that’s why I’d rather step away and say, “I’d rather not answer that because I’m not ready to give that truth yet.”

5. Rodriguez used to do a lot of prepping for his longer interviews.

“Today I showed up here with you, and I didn’t know anything you’d want to talk to me about, and I’d rather have it be that way. Before, I would have studied for six months before sitting down with you. I wanted to be more buttoned-up and have done due diligence and seen what your angle was. Now I just trust we’re going to have a good conversation, and I go for it.”

6. What’s more important, personal success and earning big money, or winning? Rodriguez’s response to this one was both fascinating and hones

“Look, I played for 22 years and won one championship. Dan Marino and Charles Barkley, they didn’t have championships, and to this day I know they hear the echoes. I feared that. So ’’09 was an amazing experience (winning the World Series with the Yankees), but the other half was relief. But I also had already made a small fortune. It’d probably be different if you asked me when I hadn’t signed my contract. Then that becomes a question of would you rather hit .330 and not win or .270 and win? That’s where it gets a little tricky."

7. Rodriguez developed great work habits watching one of his early Seattle Mariners teammates.

“I was maniacal about my work ethic. When I was about 19 years old, I played with a guy by the name of Joey Cora. He’s 5-foot-7 on a good day, he had knee problems and I saw him arriving at the stadium at 11 in the morning for a 7 o’clock game. I saw the way he took care of his body, all the work he did to get ready to play. And here I was a young shortstop hitting .358. I’m going down the stretch competing for the MVP., and nothing hurt. I felt like I could rip through a wall, and the wall would hurt, right? God, those were the good old days.

"But I remember sitting down and watching Joey Cora, and I’m like, ‘His body hurts. He doesn’t complain. He just gets to the clubhouse earlier and earlier.’ And I said, ‘If I can take my God-given ability and have his type of hunger and desire, I’ll take my chances.’”

8. Rodriguez thought he was the best player in the majors for most of his career.

“If you take away my first year and my last season, I don’t think I ever saw (anyone better)," he said.

9. There were people who were close to Rodriguez who wrongly figured he’d share his wealth with them.

“Whatever they read in the paper you signed for, they feel like someone came in a Brink’s truck and dumped all the money in your garage. And for whatever reason, some people think, ‘Where’s my cut?’ When that doesn’t happen for them, it can grow into resentment and disappointment.”

10. He feels he’s better handled fame since being around his just-as-famous fiancé Jennifer Lopez.

“I’ve never met anyone who’s more honest. She’s so authentic and genuine. It was strange to see someone of such magnitude be so normal, be such a great mother and partner and friend. How can you be like this and then go perform in front of 80,000 people? But that’s her superpower.”